Rebel Without a Cause

Gabby Jeannette
4/25/17

          Rebel Without a Cause was a wonderful movie to bring out the theme that you can only depend on yourself [nice opening statement]. James Dean played Jim Stark, an emotionally confused teen which causes him to land in situations that make it [things?] worse for him. In the movie on many occasions Jim had to choose the right choose since nobody else was there for in [him]. (I think what you are trying to say is that 'on many occasions Jim must make tough choices independently because his cries for help, mostly to his father, fall on deaf ears.)  At one point when he has to choose between staying home or going out at night and racing the "cool kids." With the poor advice from his dad, he made the consensus choice [conscious choice] to stand up for himself. Towards the end of the movie his rebel ways were no longer to make his life better but to make the lives of people around him better [good]. He broke into the castle place to be able to talk to the girl [Judy played by Natalie Wood, who also played Maria in West Side Story] he liked and take the stress from the death away and also he put his life on the line by walking out in front of the police for his friend [Plato nee John played by Sal Mineo] that [who] was getting surrounded for his crimes [wounding one of the gang members and firing upon police].

          Besides for the storyline itself Rebel Without a Cause was a pretty decent teen drama [it is by most accounts also the original teen drama] that was put together well. The fact that it is older [1955] and the standards were different brings down my rating of it [ageism?]. Besides for that factor the movie as a whole was fairly good, and I liked how it wasn't predictable. Throughout the whole movie, I had no idea what was going to happen next; SPOILER ALERT!!! I didn't expect either of those characters [Buzz or Plato] to die. Finally at the end I believe that his character progressed greatly; more responsible and caring.  Also, I liked how the suspense factor was very intense and drags you in. When the bully was driving during the race, when his jacket got caught the super zoom on the handle got viewers attentions. The music as well, stuck out and let the viewers knew the tone of the scene greatly. The movie, despite its age wasn't terrible.          

Creed

Adonis Johnson  the son of the famous boxing champion Apollo Creed, who died in a boxing match in Rocky IV Adonis wasn't born until after his father's death and wants to follow his fathers footsteps in boxing. He seeks a person who is the former heavyweight boxing champion and former friend of Apollo Creed, the retired Rocky Balboa. Rocky eventually agrees to mentor Adonis. With Rocky's help they hope to get a title job to face even deadlier opponents than his father. But whether he is a true fighter remains to be seen.

Rocky decides to take Donnie under his wing. Donnie stays at Rocky's house as they train bright and early, while gaining a  close bond.
Later in the movie before Donnie big fight with Conlan ,he starts having doubts about not being about to take after his father foot steps /not fulfill his father legacy. The fans were not thrilled t see Donnie and started booing and jeer at him. The end of the movie sadly Donnie didn't win the fight against Conlan but Conlan recognized his hard work with respect

Creed: The Stand-Alone Son #PIReviews

Creed: The Stand-Alone Son

By: Cameron Smith

Directed by: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Phylica Rashad, Tony Bellew

As a successor to the Rocky series, this film was genius! It not only took the best traits of the 1976 Rocky to another level, but also adds creative variations and elements of our real world to the universe -- providing a strong sense of realism. This could have easily been a cliche and cheesy nod to the former films, but it turned out to be anything but; instead, it gave new, modern life to what seemed as a dying series with it's past two films. It has excellent character development of Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) and chemistry between the aforementioned, his girlfriend Bianca (Tessa Thompson), and the champ Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone). It is clear that Stallone is excellent in the film, but it is also apparent that Michael B. Jordan killed it! I have come across fans of the original who only praise Stallone and didn't (so to speak) dig this one. Again, rather than taking away from the original feel of the series, it added to the appeal and told the same story from a different perspective -- of an African-American. In short, I believe that a good bulk of the complaints against this film are from those who relate more to an Italian-American and don't see the other perspective.

I would like to reiterate that this film was a great revival to the Rocky series/extension of the universe -- and a successful one at that. Not only did the franchise gain a new generation of fans, but also fans who now see the same story from another perspective. The allusions made to the former installments made sense, struck the right chord, and all-in-all done in a way that wasn't forced or overly played out. The training scenes (sometimes) played off the original -- as in with the punching bags -- but also included up-to-date music (my favorite being Nas' "Bridging the Gap"), lines, and settings which gave the film yet another stroke of genius. Thematically, it follows the notion of being a stand-alone, and not only a continuation of your predecessor very well; Adonis "Johnson," despite having an "overnight success" has been through his own struggle as a juvenile delinquent and being disconnected from his father. In short, I cannot wait to see where the series goes from here!